Training Log: Mark3

44th - another improvement in this race - 51st last year.
The only runner for Cheshire, which was a bit sad - it wasn't like we were ever going to do well, but we should easily be able to field a team. We also had no-one in the women's race.

We did start with two men but the other guy isn't on the results and I didn't see him afterwards...

My position would have made me a counting scorer for any team outside the top 10, which means if I move to Greater Manchester/Devon/Middlesex/Essex/the North East/East Wales/Merseyside/Hertfordshire/Warwickshire/Nottinghamshire/Shropshire/Worcestershire - I should at least be able to get in the team.

Impressive result for Leicestershire & Rutland in 9th place! The other county results at least broadly correlated with hillyness.

The race itself: good climbs, grim downhill. Fast start, unsurprisingly, up the BG route but with a quick loop of Latrigg before returning back to the BG route again. After the first few hundred meters, I think I was catching people the entire race.

Ran all the climbs. This was a conscious decision and didn't feel particularly faster than walking, but it was a couple of percent faster and the climb up to Lonscale was long, so I probably passed 10 people. Another few on the final climb to Skiddaw Little Man. At the col, before the out and back to the summit, the leaders were just coming back down and it was awesome to see the speed they go!

Strava tells me that in the 5k down from the summit was my "2nd fastest 5k". This is actually quite surprising because most of the way down the tourist path was very uneven rocky path (which we had to not-cut the corners of). Had I thought it through more I'd have gone with shoes with more cushioning, because I was having to be very careful and tentative with foot placement on quite a long section - so that was a bad call. Trail shoes would have been better, and fine for the Lonscale uphill which wasn't particularly muddy. They'd have been fine for the Llanberis race a couple of years ago too; so definitely worthy of consideration next year. If I'm selected :)

5th - best Lakes fell race result?
Great day whatever.

https://www.sportident.co.uk/results/CFR/2024/Newl...

Only the second time I've done it, first was 2018, and a 17min PB. The Teenager is the more interesting race since it doesn't have all the tarmac at the start, but I fancied the easier one what with racing tomorrow as well.

Started near the front and in the front group through to Little Town and most of the way to Blea Crags, but it had fragmented quite a bit when we started getting near to the summit of Robinson. The guy just ahead of my started cutting the corner of the peak, which I thought might happen now the checkpoint has been moved from the summit to the wall junction, and after checking the bearing seemed legit I cut it too and pretty much nailed it. 9th place at that point.

Unnecessary to stay on the wall path down to Littledale, which has occasionally awkward sections - can just go straight down to the col. Especially today with bright blue skies - perfect running weather. 250ml water was fine - it wasn't too warm - just optimal. Maintained 9th. 3rd fastest from Hindscarth to Dale Head but it was all very close; still 9th. Nothing revolutionary.

Standard SE line down to the re-entrant S of the tarn, except I went a bit too far SE before turning East and so I was on the opposite side of the re-entrant, which was a bit more rocky/less grassy. But I still came out more or less level with the guy I'd started with at the top. Looking at Strava there's a wide variety of lines and no consensus. Mine is the furthest S, but a few other people come out in the same re-entrant. It's on my list to recce. 8th on the leg, but felt pretty strong on the climb and was catching the guys ahead, so maybe there's a better descent option.

Catbells via Minum Crag (which is probably 50:50) and the cairn on Blea Crag (definite mistake and probably cost me 4th place). After that I was pretty lucky to spot the group ahead cutting the big Maiden Moor corner in the right place and that allowed me to catch the HH runner who'd missed it. Caught one more on the final ascent to Catbells, by contouring the last bit to the right and avoiding the tourists on the rocks, so up to 7th.

I've come down Catbells quite a lot and so I know for me, the steep grass to the right of the path is the fastest. Smashed that section and caught someone just before the zigzags, and then finally caught Joel (who I'd also caught really near end at Llangollen last week and so felt a bit bad) on the road at the end. Fastest split down from Catbells, and would have been 2nd on the Teenager behind Tom Simpson on the same split; pretty proud of that, and up into 5th overall.

R 44:48
H 11:15
D 8:59
HS 14:57
C 18:43
F 7:40

1:46:22